Funds are requested for partial support of the 2009 and 2011 Gordon Research Conferences on Developmental Biology. This five-day conference has been recognized for over thirty years as the major and most prestigious mid-size meeting in Developmental Biology, bringing together approximately 150 senior and junior scientists for discussions of the recent advances in the field. The conference has several features that make it unique. 1) It intentionally spans a wide variety of experimental systems and focuses on areas of exceptional activity or promise. This leads to fruitful comparative analyses and raises new questions about underlying mechanisms. 2) The 29 invited and confirmed speakers for the 2009 conference are leaders in the field and include 45% women and 38% junior investigators. They represent not only some of the most productive and creative members in the field, but also individuals with the capacity to generate fruitful discussions. None of the invitees spoke at the last 2007 conference. 3) The conference will take place at the Proctor Academy in New Hampshire, a geographically isolated site that keeps participants in close proximity for five days of in-depth discussion, without the distractions of nearby ski slopes, beaches, or cities. The conference format will consist in the mornings and evenings of 44 short talks followed by discussion, and in the afternoon of informal interactions and presentation of approximately 90 posters. The nine sessions cover classic topics and emerging areas: asymmetry and growth, morphogen gradients and positional information, signaling, evolution, stem cells and regeneration, morphogenesis, transcriptional control, regulatory networks and epigenetics, as well as organogenesis. Some of the session time has been kept uncommitted to choose 13 speakers from attendants. By maximizing both formal discussion and informal interactions, the Gordon Conference on Developmental Biology will help to define both the present state and the future of the field. PROJECT RELEVANCE: The field of Developmental Biology has made important contributions to our understanding and treatment of disease, ranging from cell death, birth defects and cancer, to stem cells and regeneration. The proposed conference will bring together leaders in the field to discuss the status and future of Developmental Biology.